Florence + The Machine - MTV Unplugged [Live] (19/06/2012)
Back in the early 90s, MTV’s unplugged sessions gave us one of the most incredible live recordings ever, courtesy of Nirvana. Nowadays, MTV is associated with trash television that fails to stimulate the brain cells. With their latest unplugged recording, they enlist Florence + The Machine in what appears to be hope at grasping past glory.
When Ceremonials was released, opening track Only If For A Night blew listeners away. The same tactic is used here and the result is lackluster. Florence sounds like she’s distracted from the show at hand, which is disappointing considering how the restructuring of the instrumentals could have really created something wonderful.
Thankfully, Drumming Song more than makes up for this with it’s grand piano backing, while Florence begins to project her voice at a stronger level, which we all know she is capable of. Breaking Down is performed beautifully, and really allows Florence to showcase her vocal talents.
Interestingly, No Light, No Light, becomes something of an opera like ballad here. It’s a strong rendition, which varies highly from the original recording. My biggest grudge with this record is a duet with one of rock’s greatest front men, Josh Homme. In an almost sacrilege move, the duo give Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash’s classic duet Jackson a makeover. It’s not a bad cover, but it is material that really shouldn’t be touched unless you can give it one hundred percent justice. They both sound out of their depth in the attempt, and it causes the rendition to make very little impact on the album.
Thankfully, the recording does redeem itself towards the end, with Florence’s stripped back version of Dog Days Are Over being the standout on the release, but a finale of Shake It Out closes the album with a fizzle rather than a bang.
Die hard fans of Florence will savour this release as an intimate listening session with the fiery goddess, but for those unfamiliar with her work, this is not the place to start. Florence herself may be in fine form, but The Machine is lacking any real power.
Luke Sutton
Follow me on Twitter! - @lukesutton
When Ceremonials was released, opening track Only If For A Night blew listeners away. The same tactic is used here and the result is lackluster. Florence sounds like she’s distracted from the show at hand, which is disappointing considering how the restructuring of the instrumentals could have really created something wonderful.
Thankfully, Drumming Song more than makes up for this with it’s grand piano backing, while Florence begins to project her voice at a stronger level, which we all know she is capable of. Breaking Down is performed beautifully, and really allows Florence to showcase her vocal talents.
Interestingly, No Light, No Light, becomes something of an opera like ballad here. It’s a strong rendition, which varies highly from the original recording. My biggest grudge with this record is a duet with one of rock’s greatest front men, Josh Homme. In an almost sacrilege move, the duo give Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash’s classic duet Jackson a makeover. It’s not a bad cover, but it is material that really shouldn’t be touched unless you can give it one hundred percent justice. They both sound out of their depth in the attempt, and it causes the rendition to make very little impact on the album.
Thankfully, the recording does redeem itself towards the end, with Florence’s stripped back version of Dog Days Are Over being the standout on the release, but a finale of Shake It Out closes the album with a fizzle rather than a bang.
Die hard fans of Florence will savour this release as an intimate listening session with the fiery goddess, but for those unfamiliar with her work, this is not the place to start. Florence herself may be in fine form, but The Machine is lacking any real power.
Luke Sutton
Follow me on Twitter! - @lukesutton